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Android Marshmallow Adopt SD Cards As Internal Storage

In Android 6.0, a new feature “Adoptable Storage” feature was introduced. As we make syncing, media apps, this feature is something that I want to breakdown for our customers.

Basically, when you adopt an SD card as internal storage, the SD card becomes the “new” internal storage of the system, which is super convenient. Apps install on the SD card with ease and apps like iSyncr will just show a single, easy to use storage area. However, this ease of use comes with a price. Your SD card will not be as fast or reliable as the internal memory. Further, the original internal memory is only usable for apps, the best I can tell.

Pros:

Easy to use

Your SD card is much more secure

No "grant access" cumbersome UI for SD card access

Cons:

Internal storage isn't usable for music/photos/video

Your SD card won't work in other devices until reformatted

SD cards are almost always slower than internal memory

SD cards are not reliable, and when they corrupt, it won't be pretty

In conclusion, if you have a lot of internal storage (more than 8GB), then we generally do not recommend adopting an SD card as internal storage, as you are going to lose space where you could have put music/pictures/videos. However, if you have 8GB or less of internal storage, adopting an SD card is a viable option for easily expanding the storage size of your phone.

If you have further questions/thoughts/comments or a looking to solve an issue with our products, please email us!